Lyrical Federal Judge Rules Skipper Not So Brave And Sure

The Case Inspired Him To Write His Ruling To The Gilligan's Island Theme.

April 22, 1997|By Debbie Salamone of The Sentinel Staff

Has the sexy Ginger gotten into an Orlando judge's head?

Or perhaps the perky Mary Ann?

Or is Gilligan simply to blame, as usual?

U.S. Magistrate David Baker denies all of the above. The Orlando jurist says he was just trying to be creative when he rhymed portions of a recent court ruling to the theme song of Gilligan's Island.

Like the 1960s television show, the case was about a shipwrecked pleasure boat. And all that talk about the rolling ocean just put Baker in a seafaring mood.

''Judges tend to have a style that's pretty dry,'' Baker said. ''It just seemed to me with the nautical theme . . . As long as you take the issue seriously, a little creativity seemed appropriate to me.''

His literary prowess has tickled a few legal funny bones in the normally stodgy realm of federal court. But Baker, ranked No. 1 among local judges in recent lawyer opinion polls, is humble about the whole thing.

The 45-year-old jurist isn't even a great fan of the TV comedy, which has been in reruns for decades. He said he just found the tune easy to parody.

So sing along:

''Oh sit right back and you'll hear a tale

A tale of a fateful trip

That started from this tropic port

Aboard Defendant Ship.''

Got the rhythm? Here's the story:

On March 5, 1995, Orlando lawyer Eric Faddis capsized his 23-foot boat in the Southeast Shoals off Cape Canaveral - an area known for dangerous seas.

''The skipper's name was Faddis

A lawyer if you please

He took two friends out fishing

And dumped them in the sea.''

David Sands, with Sand Towing and Salvage in Port Canaveral, came to the rescue in his boat, the Dragon II. He found Faddis' craft floating upside down.

''The Coast Guard came to pluck them out

And Sands, the salvor, came

To save the fishing boat Faddis loved

The mighty sea craft ''Unnamed.''

But Sands, he did not right the ship

He towed her as she lay

And ''Unnamed'' lost her console

And T-tower that day''

Conditions on the shallow Shoals were rough. By the time Sands arrived, the boat had drifted for more than an hour in strong current with swells 8 feet and higher.

Sands was told the boat had a tower, but he said he didn't see it - only cables and wires dangling beneath the hull. He tried to right the ship but failed.

Faddis, who has capsized several vessels before, wasn't happy. He blamed the salvager's negligence for tearing off his tower and console. He said he dove beneath the boat before the salvor arrived and saw things intact.

Faddis, who eventually refurbished his boat with insurance proceeds, refused to pay a $1,375 bill. U.S. marshals seized his boat, and the case went to trial in U.S. District Court in Orlando for two days in December.

Six lawyers. Four volumes of legal paperwork.

''What caused the loss? How deep the sea?

Expert opinions flew

Another salvor testified

And sailors of the crew.''

After hearing the testimony, the judge reflected. Last month, he decided the only negligent person was Faddis - for taking a short cut through the treacherous Shoals and imperiling everyone and his boat.

The judge said Faddis had gotten a bargain for the salvage, anyway, and ordered the lawyer to pay the salvors $1,500 plus $360 in interest. Faddis said he would not comment while the judge is still considering whether he should pay attorney fees to the winners. He could owe more than $50,000.